Ctg Wasa signs deal for Package-1 with Japan-Korea joint venture

Chittagong Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (CWASA) yesterday signed a contract with Kolon-Kubota JV (joint venture) for implementing package-1 of Karnaphuli Water Supply Project (KWSP) Phase-2, divided into 5 packages.

AKM Fazlullah, CWASA managing director and Jung Chang Dou, project manager of KWSP-Phase-2, signed the contract at a programme at a hotel in Chittagong.

Kolon-Kubota JV, a joint venture of South Korean Kolon Global Corporation and Japanese Kubota Construction, will complete the Tk 478 crore package-1 in 36 months, which includes water intake facility with 150 mld (million litres per day) pumping capacity, a water treatment plant with 143 mld production capacity both at Rangunia upazila, and a water reservoir with 24,800 cubic metre capacity and a 2,400 cubic metre capacity elevated water tank in the city's Nasirabad and Halishahar areas, said Quazi Yeakub Sirajuddowla, project director of KWSP Phase-2.

The total value of the project is Tk 4,491.15 crore, of which Japan International Co-operation Agency (Jica) is funding Tk 3,623.28 crore, the government Tk 844.80 crore and CWASA Tk 23.07 crore from its own funds.

Around 600km transmission and distribution pipeline would be constructed across the city including replacing the age-old pipelines, to be completed by January 2022, said CWASA officials.

"KWSP Phase-1 is almost at the finishing stage while a treatment plant with 143 mld capacity would be completed by April," said Fazlullah.

Beside KWSP Phase 1 and 2, CWASA is also constructing a 90 mld surface water treatment plant at Modunaghat from river Halda under Chittagong Water Supply Improvement and Sanitation Project, to be completed by 2018, hoped Fazlullah.

"The Bhandaljuri Water Supply Project with funding from South Korea to meet the water demand for KAFCO, Korean EPZ, CUFL and inhabitants of Patiya and Boalkhali upazilas on the other part of the river Karnaphuli has been approved by Ecnec last month and recruitment of consultant is going on," the CWASA chief informed.

After completion of all the projects by the end of 2021, CWASA will be able to provide uninterrupted water supply and all the underground deep tube wells will be shut down, he added.

In-Ho Han, vice-president of Kolon Global Corporation, Suke Hiro Sasaki, director general of Kubota Construction and Golam Hossain, CWASA deputy managing director also addressed the programme.